by Lisa Keen

President Barack Obama continued his trend of including
references to LGBT people in his State of the Union address, but he got mixed
reviews from the community itself.

Early in the one-hour speech February 12 he told Congress
and the national television audience, "It is our unfinished task to
restore the basic bargain that built this country – the idea that if you
work hard and meet your responsibilities, you can get ahead, no matter where
you come from, what you look like, or who you love."

Later, in talking about the military, he said, "We will
ensure equal treatment for all service members, and equal benefits for their
families – gay and straight."

Family Equality Council Executive Director Jennifer Chrisler
singled out the president's general comment for fairness, saying, "Tonight
the president made clear that every American deserves to have a shot at the
American dream regardless of where they live, what they look like or who they
love."

Allyson Robinson, head of the OutServe-SLDN, applauded the
military-specific statement, saying "President Obama was very clear
tonight in his assertion that lesbian and gay service members and their
families must be treated equally by the nation they serve."

But Rea Carey, head of the National Gay and Lesbian Task
Force, sounded a disappointed tone.

"We have often said that President Obama is the most
pro-LGBT president in history. His first term was filled with monumental gains
for LGBT people and our families, including the passage of a federal hate
crimes law, repeal of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' and his declaration of support
for the freedom to marry for same-sex couples," said Carey. "But the
state of the union for many LGBT people remains one of economic inequality and
insecurity. We urge President Obama to use his leadership to help get us over
the finish line during his second term."

Carey said the president should issue an executive order
banning companies that contract with the federal government from discriminating
in employment based on sexual orientation and gender identity. And she said Obama
should "pressure" Congress to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination
Act.

Anthony Martinez, executive director of the Civil Rights
Agenda, a statewide LGBT group in Illinois, expressed disappointment that Obama
did not use "some of his political capital to push for passage of ENDA,
immigration reforms that help same-sex couples, and marriage equality in
states, such as Illinois."

And Heather Cronk, managing director of the national
activist group GetEqual, said the president's remarks amount to "lip
service."

"Time and time again, President Obama continues to pay
lip service to employment equity," said Cronk, "but refuses to take
the simple step of signing an executive order that would end LGBT discrimination
by federal contractors – and that would prevent taxpayer dollars,
including taxpayer dollars from LGBT Americans, from going to discriminatory
companies."

In his first State of the Union address, in 2010, Obama
called for repeal of the federal law barring openly gay people from serving in
the military. In 2011, just a month after signing into law the bill that repealed
DADT, the president used his State of the Union address to urge universities
that had been barring military recruiters over the gay ban to start allowing
recruiters back on campus. Last year, he made one direct reference to something
gay, saying that, when service members put on their uniforms, "it doesn't
matter if you're black or white; Asian or Latino; conservative or liberal; rich
or poor; gay or straight."

As in past years, the White House again included an openly
gay person among its two-dozen special guests sitting with first lady Michelle
Obama in the House gallery. This year, it was Tracey Hepner of Arlington,
Virginia, and a co-founder of the Military Partners and Families Coalition. The
coalition provides support and advocacy for LGBT military partners and their
families. She also works full time for the Department of Homeland Security as a
master behavior detection officer. She is married to the first openly gay or
lesbian general officer in the military, Army Brigadier General Tammy Smith.

The Human Rights Campaign noted that Representative Jerrold
Nadler (D-New York) invited a same-sex couple, Kelly Costello and Fabiola
Morales, to be his guests at the event.

The White House released a "President's Plan for a
Strong Middle Class and a Strong America," in conjunction with the address
Tuesday night. The plan made no mention of LGBT people specifically, but
included one section called "Encouraging and strengthening families" in
which the president proposes "to remove financial deterrents to marriage
for low income couples, and to support and encourage fatherhood including
working with the faith community and the private sector." The plan also
called for passage of the bill to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act
but made no specific mention of the new provisions that would make the program
available to victims of domestic abuse regardless of their sexual orientation.

Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisconsin), the first openly gay
person elected to the Senate, issued a brief statement applauding the speech. She
did not highlight either of Obama's gay-related remarks.